No Roads Left
by Lost x Inspiration
Summary: Bella moves from California to Kentucky when her mother suddenly uproots her and her 2 siblings. What happens when she meets the love of her life, Edward, but he's in love with someone else? JxB, ExA. AU, AH, OOC. R&R! :
1. Prologue: Everything Went Black

I watched as Edward leaned over and kissed Alice, how his body moved above hers on the couch so he could get closer to her, and as her body responded below his.

And I felt my stomach tighten as my body responded to the scene before me.

I jumped up from the couch I was on with Jasper, releasing his hold on my hand and running for the door. "Bella," he called as I made my way through to crowd of kids, but I was gone.

I stumbled out into the black night, and I ran for home. I made it to the corner of the street, but I couldn't remember what side road I had to take to get home the fastest. As I paced back and forth on the street corner at four in the morning, it looked as though the pavement was moving, and moving towards me, and I began to freak out a bit.

Then, with a smack, I hit the ground and everything went black.


	2. Uprooted

**A/N: this is a flashback! I don't know if I made that clear or not. The first chapter of this story is actually the prologue, but this is where the story initially starts. Sorry if I caused any confusion!**

"Bella, honey," my mother whispered through my dreams, her hand gripping my arm and shaking me. "Bella, I need you to wake up. Wake up, honey."

I rolled over and saw that the light in my room was on. I squinted my eyes and tried to look away, but Renee took her hand and made me look her in the eyes. "I need you to wake up, baby."

"What is it?" I mumbled, still half asleep.

"We're leaving," she replied, her words devoid of emotion.

"Where are we going?"

"Bella, just listen to me." Her face was hard and her voice was low. "I need you to get your duffle bag and pack as much as you can, alright? And do it now."

I took a moment to just stare at her, finally realizing I was awake. "Why?"

"Don't question me. Just do it."

Renee left the room without another word. I could hear her pounding on Tyler's door. "Tyler!" she shouted. "Open this door right now!"

I muffled her voice by closing my own door. I turned to face my room, and tried to register what I was doing. What did I need to pack? Where were we going? How long were we staying?

My mother seemed to be anxious though, or irritated. Possibly scared. And very rarely is she anything but happy and cheerful.

I took the duffle bag out of my closet and threw a few pairs of jeans into it. Then a few shirts, a jacket, underwear. I took the cheap mp3 player I got for Christmas a few years ago and threw that in as well, along with my favorite books and my journal.

When I was finished, I felt kind of sad. Everything important to me was packed into a single bag.

I sat down on my bed. I wasn't really sure what to do. The only instructions I was given were to pack as much possible into a bag.

I caught a glimpse of the clock. It was only a few minutes past three in the morning.

After a few moments in silence, I heard my mother stomping down the narrow hallway. "Tyler! Bella! Come on!"

I opened my door at the same time that Tyler did, and we bumped into each other in the hall. "Where are we going?" I asked in a hushed tone.

"No clue," Tyler said, and yawned.

Renee stood at the end of the hallway, and as I passed her she pushed my back towards the garage. "Come on, guys, Dana's already in her car seat."

I climbed into the backseat to sit beside my four-year-old sister, Dana. She was sound asleep, her head tilted to the side and drool starting to slide down her cheek. Looking at her, I couldn't help but smile. She was precious.

"Seriously, Mom," Tyler blurted out as he opened the car door, interrupting my thoughts. "Where are you taking us?"

"Just get in the car and I'll explain," Renee stated, fiddling with her seatbelt.

Tyler remained still, not making any move to get in the car. His face was almost angry.

"Tyler, please," my mother begged, her change in tone drastic. "There's no time for this. I will explain. Please, just get in."

Renee's pleading broke Tyler's façade, and with a sigh, he quickly jumped into the car and hooked in.

"Mom." Tyler began as Renee shot out of the driveway, down our street and towards the interstate. Riding in cars had always made me sleepy, and the rhythm of the tires going over the pavement was like a lullaby, and I found myself yawning. "Does this have anything to do with Phil?"

"What happened to Phil?" I tried to ask, but I found I hadn't really said anything at all, and I was beginning to fall asleep.

The car was silent.

"Mom," Tyler repeated, but this time he seemed farther away.

Again, no answer.

"Mom," Tyler said, sternly this time.

After a moment of silence, I heard something that sounded like a sob.

"What did he do to you?" Tyler asked, concerned, but I didn't hear anything else. The car's rocking rhythm had sung me to sleep.


	3. Lonely

When I woke up, we were still in the car. As I looked out the window, the landscape was entirely flat and empty. No trees, no buildings. Just the road and the sky.

"Where are we?" I asked, my voice scratchy.

"Hmm?" Renee hummed, seemingly content. It was a change from last night.

I cleared my throat and tried again. "Where are we?"

"I think we're still in Texas," she said, scratching her head. "We should be getting to Oklahoma soon, though."

My eyebrows furrowed. "Oklahoma? Why are we going to Oklahoma?"

"We're not going to Oklahoma, sweetie," she laughed, as if I should have known this already. "We're going to Kentucky."

That one baffled me even more. "Then why Kentucky?"

As soon as I asked that, the car hit a pothole, and with a jolt, Dana's face popped up and she gasped, her face scrunching up like she was going to cry.

"Mommy," she wailed, and the tears started coming.

"Shh, it's okay," Renee cooed, reaching back behind her and patting Dana's hand. "You don't need to cry."

Dana began to calm down. "I'm hungry," she whined through her sobs.

"Oh!" Renee exclaimed, and looked at the clock. "That's right. We'll stop at a gas station. Everyone has to take a bathroom break."

As soon as she found an exit, Renee pulled off and stopped at a gas station. Tyler and I took Dana and went to find the bathroom. There was only one, it was outside of the building, it was unisex, and you had to get a key to go into it. There was already someone in it, too, so Tyler and I waited outside.

"Why are we going to Kentucky?" I asked Tyler.

"Shh!" he reprimanded, looking pointedly down at Dana.

"What's the big deal?" I questioned with attitude.

Tyler grabbed me by the arm and pulled me closer to him so that my ear was by his mouth.

"Ow," I complained.

"Listen," he whispered. "It's not something we need to talk about right this second or in public. We'll tell you eventually."

"Eventually?" I exclaimed, breaking free of his grasp and turning to look him in the face. "I want to know now. I've been uprooted from my home and now we're going to Kentucky, for God knows how long, and I don't understand anything that's going on. I'm a big girl, Tyler. I want to know."

"You've been uprooted?" he asked me, his eyes wild. "You? You've been taken from your home and precious life? Whatever. You're just a freshman, Bella. You have nothing important back at home. But I'm a senior. In the middle of my senior year, and I've left all my friends, all my grades, my whole life behind. And you've been uprooted? Seriously, Bella. Stop thinking of just yourself and start thinking about everyone else."

His words hurt me. "Why are you being so bitter? You're not usually like this."

He mumbled something under his breath, and it sounded something like, "Yeah, and Phil isn't usually a monster, either."

"What was that?" I asked, but as soon as I did, the man in the bathroom stepped out and handed us the key.

"Nothing," Tyler said, his voice sounding weak. "Just take Dana to the bathroom. She's doing her potty dance."

* * * *

When we all climbed back in the car, Renee handed us a bag of food. Inside were doughnuts, milk, and apple juice containers, and various other snack foods and packaged sandwiches.

When I had Dana settled with her doughnuts and juice, and figuring I'd get no answers from Renee or Tyler, I took my mp3 player out and turned it on.

A particular song started playing, and I recognized it as Phil and Renee's wedding song. I began to smile, remembering their wedding. I was the maid of honor, even though I was only ten years old. I had had my hair and makeup done professionally, along with getting a manicure and a pedicure, and I wore the most gorgeous dress I had ever seen. But I realized how ordinary I looked compared to Renee when she started walking down the aisle.

Renee cried through the whole thing, as did Phil. They were so in love. After the reception, Tyler and I had to go stay with our Aunt Kathryn for a few weeks. I remember clearly, that was when Tyler began to distance himself from me.

Tyler and I made it hell for our Aunt Kathryn. We always bickered over the same thing. I would ask him to play house or school with me, just like we always did, and he would always answer with, "No, Bella, I'm too old for that now."

"But you're only thirteen," I would counter, begging him to play with me.

"No," he'd say sternly, frightening me.

I had lost my only friend.

* * * *

About a month after the wedding, Renee announced that she was pregnant. I can remember being so excited that I would have a new baby brother or sister. I never realized what it would do to our family, though.

When Dana was born, the first few minutes in the hospital were amazing. The whole family was there, everyone took pictures, I even got to hold her. Then, quickly, I realized that I wasn't the baby anymore, and she got all of the attention.

That was hard for me. Tyler wouldn't play with me anymore because he was "too old," and my own mother couldn't pay attention to me because she had to take care of the baby. She was always exhausted, and almost always in a bad mood because she was so tired.

I missed the family we had before Phil. When it was just Renee, Tyler and me. When Renee gave me anything I wanted whenever I wanted. Before Tyler was too old to play with me. It was when we all knew and loved each other, and we were closest.

After Phil came into the picture, everything changed, and changed for the worse. And I began to blame him for everything that went wrong in my life. Because I had lost my mother to the new baby. Because I had lost my brother to adolescence.

Because I was lonely.


	4. The Ugly Truth

When it started to get dark, Renee pulled off the interstate and we stopped at a restaurant in Oklahoma. It served burgers, fries, and apple pie. It wasn't exactly the best food in the world.

Afterwards, we searched for a hotel, but couldn't find one that looked like it wouldn't have cockroaches crawling around the rooms. When Renee started to yawn, she decided on a cheap motel with a broken sign.

Since I had slept through most of the day in the car, I couldn't fall asleep. Renee, on the other hand, was fast asleep and lightly snoring. Not wanting to wake her, I slowly rose out of bed and put on my shoes. I took the key from the nightstand and went to the door, grabbing the handle and opening it slowly--

"Where are you going?" someone whispered, and I jumped. When I turned around, it was only Tyler, and I sighed, relieved that it wasn't Renee.

"I can't sleep," I whispered back. "I was just going for a walk."

"Let me go with you," he said, and got out of bed as gently as I had, putting on his shoes. "You shouldn't be going anywhere alone in the middle of the night, anyway. Especially in a strange place."

I rolled my eyes. This was the Tyler I knew, cautious and caring.

* * * *

"So, are you going to tell me why we're out here?" I began, sticking my hands in the pockets of my jacket and turning to look at Tyler. "Because I've been pretty willing to just go along with whatever Mom's said, and I haven't complained once yet. I think I deserve to know what's happening."

Tyler sighed, and waited a moment before answering. "How to begin?" he asked, thinking to himself. "Okay. So, you know how Phil has been staying with his brother on and off for a while now?"

"Yeah," I prompted, wanting him to continue.

"Do you know why?"

"Well, obviously they've been fighting. I didn't think it was a big deal, though," I admitted.

Tyler kicked a rock that was in the road. "It's been more than just fighting. He's been hitting her."

My eyes popped open. "Since when?" I demanded, stopping in my tracks.

Tyler turned around and stopped, facing me. I couldn't see his expression, though, because it was too dark outside.

"For a few months now. That's why she made him stay with his brother. Every time it happened, though, he swore he'd never do it again and that he loved her and that he never meant to hurt her."

"The bastard," I murmured.

"Bella!" Tyler scolded. "Don't ever say something like that."

"You say stuff like that all the time," I reminded him.

"That's different," he argued.

"Is it?"

Though I couldn't see him very well in the darkness, I could tell that he was verging on anger. He turned around and continued walking.

I ran to catch up with him. "Hey, Tyler, I'm sorry. Keep telling the story."

He didn't speak at first, but then sighed and began again. "Okay. Well, when Phil came home last night, he…. Well, he…" he trailed off, thinking. "There's really no easy way to say this."

"Say what?" I questioned, not wanting him to stop.

"He… raped her."

I gasped, shocked. "He raped her?"

"Yeah," Tyler said plainly.

I took a minute to register that. "But… but they're married."

Tyler stopped walking and threw his head back. "I knew you wouldn't understand."

"What do you mean?"

"You're just too young to understand this."

"No I'm not!" I defended.

"Whatever, Bella. That's the story. You wanted to know the story, and that's what happened, whether you believe it or not, and whether you understand the severity of it or not." He paused for a moment. "We should turn around, start heading back."

We did so, and we didn't say anything for a while.

"So, why are we going to Kentucky?" I began quietly.

"That's where Mom's parents live."

That was different. I had never met any of my grandparents, except for Phil's parents. But Phil was my step-father. Renee had never had a good relationship with her parents. When she became pregnant with Tyler when she was just shy of turning eighteen and unwed, her parents were furious and kicked her out. As a result, she married Charlie and moved in with him. I was born three years later, and they divorced shortly after that.

"So are we moving in with them?" I asked, returning to the present.

"Yep," he said, making the end of the word pop.

"Oh."

There was really not much more to say, so we walked the rest of the way back to the hotel in silence. When we opened the door, Renee and Dana were still sound asleep. I climbed back into bed, but try as I might, I still couldn't fall asleep. I let my mind wander, and what seemed like moments later, Renee woke up and began getting ready.

When she spotted me watching her, she was startled. "Oh," she began, "I didn't know you were awake."

"Yeah, I just woke up," I lied.

"Will you wake Tyler and Dana up? We need to get on the road again so we can make it there before tonight."

"Alright."

Renee smiled, and walked into the bathroom, closing the door.

As soon as she was out of sight, Tyler rolled over and looked at me.

"Didn't sleep at all?" he questioned.

"Nope," I said.

"Yeah, me either."


	5. Higher Standards

Since I hadn't slept at all that night, it wasn't difficult for me to fall asleep on the road and sleep the rest of the way to Kentucky.

While I slept, I dreamt about my grandparents. In my dreams, my grandmother was short, like me, but round and with rosy cheeks. Her hair was sandy brown with gray streaks, and her smile melted your heart.

My grandfather was tall and lean, balding, and he wore thick square glasses. He was equally as sweet as my grandmother.

We pulled into the driveway and they were waiting on the porch for us. When we climbed out of the car, my grandmother ran through the lawn to give each of us a hug.

"Ohh, it's so good to finally see you!" she cooed, grabbing me tight into her arms. The she suddenly grabbed me by me shoulders and made me face her. "Bella, sweetie, wake up."

I was confused. "What?"

"Bella, honey, you need to wake up now." The voice faded from my dream grandmother's and it became Renee's.

I opened my eyes, and I saw that it was dark outside. My mother was standing over me with the car door open.

"Grab your things. Let's go inside."

I stepped out of the car with my bag and faced the house. It was huge. Bigger than I would have thought. Sadly, though, there was no porch like I had seen in my dream.

Renee approached the door, anxious and tense. She gulped, and then rung the doorbell. It seemed as if she was holding her breath.

A woman who looked to be in her late forties answered the door. Her hair was black and cropped short just around her face. She was very tall and very thin, almost like a model. I was for sure it couldn't have been Renee's mother, until I realized she had the same green eyes as Renee.

"Renee," the woman said arrogantly.

"Hi, Mom," Renee smiled, her voice shaky. I don't think she was ready for this reunion. "Oh, well, this is Tyler," she pointed out Tyler, "and Bella," pointing to me, "and this right here is Dana." She was holding Dana, and turned her around so the woman could get a better look at her.

"Nice to meet you," she offered. I almost laughed. I didn't think your own grandmother was supposed to say things like "nice to meet you, come again!" It all seemed surreal.

"My name is Elizabeth," she continued. "You can call me Elizabeth."

No one spoke. The silence grew heavier until it was unbearable. The pressure of the quiet was pushing on my ears and I felt like screaming just to break it.

"Well, come on in," Elizabeth sighed, finally breaking the silence and holding the door open wide enough for us to squeeze through.

"The bedrooms are upstairs," she began, motioning towards the stairway. "Since it's so late, you all can go and get settled and go to sleep. We can catch up in the morning." With that, Elizabeth walked down the hallway towards another staircase, and disappeared from our sight.

"Alright then," Renee said, beginning her way up the stairs. "Bella, Tyler, you get your own rooms. Dana and I will share the master bedroom with the master bathroom. There's a bathroom between your two rooms, and unfortunately, you'll have to share." She stopped at the top of the stairs and turned around to look at us. "Don't fight over the rooms. They're essentially the same." She opened a door and threw her bag inside. "Good night, kids."

"Night," Tyler and I said at the same time.

Tyler and I both inspected the two rooms together. The first one was painted a light purple with a large window on the far wall. It had a queen sized bed and a very fancy desk, and a walk in closet. It was perfect for me, and I crossed my fingers that Tyler would like the next room better.

Fortunately, he did. It was painted dark blue and had a TV, so he took that room.

I took my time hanging up the few clothes I had brought with me in the spacious closet, and folding my jeans and placing them on the shelves in the closet.

Afterwards, I sat down at the gorgeous desk. The chair wasn't too comfortable, but it would do. I pulled out my journal and began writing.

It was nearly five in the morning when I was finally tired enough to climb into the bed and doze off.

At 6:30 precisely I was woken up by an alarm clock that I hadn't noticed before that was placed on a bedside table that I hadn't noticed before. Elizabeth opened the door to my room shortly after I had found the plug and ripped the alarm clock out of the wall.

"Up," she said shortly. "Clean up and get ready. We need to get you registered at the high school." Before leaving the room, she turned on the light, I'm assuming to make sure I wouldn't go back to sleep.

I rolled out of bed, groggy and sleep-deprived. More than anything I wanted to just climb back in and return to dreamland, but I was afraid of what Elizabeth would do to me if I did.

I ran for the bathroom to take a quick shower so I wouldn't have to wait for Tyler. When I got out, I put on jeans and a t-shirt of one of my favorite bands, and sneakers. Since it was December and I was certain Kentucky was colder than California, I also grabbed my jacket and went downstairs.

At first, I had trouble finding the kitchen. The first floor was a big circle; at the bottom of the staircase I took a right and ended up walking through the entry hall, a living room, and the dining room before coming across the kitchen. I assumed there would be food ready, but there was none.

A man was sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee, reading the newspaper.

"Well, hello," he said, his voice jolly. He put down his coffee and newspaper and took off the glasses he had on.

"Hi," I replied timidly. "I'm Bella." I didn't know really what else to say, other than to introduce myself to who I assumed was my grandfather.

He laughed. "I know that." When he finished laughing, he continued. "My name's Randall. You can call me Grandpa."

"Really?" I asked, surprised, then regretted it. I didn't want him knowing I resented Elizabeth for making us call her Elizabeth.

"Yes, really," he answered with a smile. "Don't pay attention to Elizabeth. She's very stubborn."

I smiled. "Alright, Grandpa."

"Here, have a seat," he suggested, waving his arm to the seat across from him. "Are you hungry?"

"A bit, yeah," I admitted.

"What would you like to eat? We have cereal."

"Cereal's fine," I said.

Randall sat there staring at me, a crooked smile on his face. "It's in that cupboard behind you."

"Oh," I said, blushing. I felt stupid for thinking he'd make a bowl of cereal for me. "Right."

"And in case you were wondering, the milk's in the fridge." When I turned around to look at him, he winked, then picked up his newspaper and coffee again, replaced his glasses, and returned to silence.

While I was eating, Tyler came through the same way I did, yawning. I motioned toward the cereal, and he got his own bowl. The crunching sound of the cereal between our teeth disturbed the otherwise quiet room.

Elizabeth walked in after Tyler and I had finished. She looked directly at our empty bowls. "Well, clean up after yourselves."

"Elizabeth," Randall said.

"Don't chide me, Randall."

I picked up our bowls and put them in the sink, rinsing them out.

"Let's go. I want you to be enrolled before the school day starts so you won't be tardy." Elizabeth left the room, and Tyler and I promptly followed.

"Renee!" Elizabeth shouted up the staircase. "We're leaving now!"

Elizabeth walked through the hallway and out the front door.

"Should we wait for Mom?" I asked Tyler worriedly.

"I'd rather not take my chances," he said, and pushed me out of the door.

* * * *

The drive to the school was short but tense. Renee had been a few minutes behind us, so Elizabeth was not happy.

We parked and got out of the car, no one saying a word. Elizabeth walked swiftly, so by the time we had walked up the hill that led to the front door of the school, I was nearly out of breath.

Our counselor's name was Mrs. Wesley. She was heavyset, short, and had a bad perm and fake blond hair. But, she seemed nice enough.

I didn't really pay attention to anything Mrs. Wesley, Elizabeth or Renee were saying. Any information they needed about me Renee could answer, anyway. So I tuned them out and let my mind wander.

It was really weird. Only a few days ago, everything was fine in California. Nothing was out of the ordinary. Now, I'm living in Kentucky with grandparents who I've just met and I'm enrolling into a totally new school. If the students were anything like Elizabeth, I'd be in hell. On the other hand, if they were anything like Randall, it wouldn't be so bad.

"Okay then, Bella," Mrs. Wesley said, pulling me out of my daydreams. "I have you signed up for Advanced English, Biology, Advanced Geometry, AP Government, Advanced Symphonic Orchestra, Psychology and Advanced World History."

"What?" I exclaimed. Never in my life had I been exactly bright, but I definitely was not smart enough for honors courses. "No. That's not right. I can't do anything advanced. I took all general classes back at home."

"Well, you're not going to get away with that as long as you're living in my house," Elizabeth stated, and I shut my mouth.

I groaned internally. Could this get any worse?


	6. Friends and Enemies

**A/N: Alright! I feel like I finally am getting to the good parts. It took me a while to figure out how Bella and her family were going to get from California to Kentucky--I didn't want to just leave everything out. Anyway, hopefully this will be a better chapter for everyone. :]**

School started at 8:30. Since we were done with getting our transcripts organized and our schedules made by 7:45, I decided to take the time to find all of my classes. The last thing I wanted was to look like a loser who couldn't find their class in the middle of the school year.

My locker was on the far end of the school, and none of my classes were near it. Here, you only had six minutes between classes, so there was no way I'd be able to make it there between class periods. I sighed. It looked like I was going to have to carry my books with me to every class. Great.

Advanced English wasn't bad at all. The teacher was also the baseball coach, so he wasn't too uptight on school policies or homework. And it looked like the only things we'd really be studying this year were vocabulary, spelling, Romeo and Juliet, and To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, all of which I'd already learned about.

Biology was also pretty easy. He was a first year teacher, so he was pretty much going with trial and error. Therefore: if the class didn't do well on a test or quiz, he threw it out.

Advanced Geometry was horrible, though. The teacher was pregnant and was extremely mean. She made me stand up in front of the class and introduce myself, which I wasn't particularly fond of doing. I think she did it only to humiliate me, not as a nice gesture.

What made it worse was the girl I had to sit next to. Her name was Rosalie, and she had beautiful, long flowing hair and the most gorgeous face. She was even tall and thin and curvy at the same time. I automatically envied her for being so drop dead gorgeous.

I came to a problem that I couldn't figure out, and I asked for her help.

"Um, Rosalie? Do you know how to do number six?"

She turned and looked at me with a pompous expression. "Do I look like the teacher to you? Go ask her," she spat at me, and returned to her own work.

Her bitterness offended me.

AP Government was equally as bad. Not only did I not understand what was going on, I had to sit by an overly annoying boy who wouldn't stop talking to me the whole time.

"So your name's Bella, right? Is that short for Isabella?" he asked excitedly.

"Yeah," I replied.

"That's cool. Where are you from?"

"California."

"No way! That's so cool. Why did you come to Lexington, then?"

"I don't know," I replied, the annoyance in my voice breaking through.

"Well there's got to be a reason why you picked Lexing--"

"Look. I. Don't. Know." I was aggravated by then.

I think he got the point after that.

After AP Government was my scheduled lunch. This was the time I was dreading all day. I hadn't really met anyone nice in any of my morning classes, and I absolutely hated sitting alone.

Thankfully, I saw Tyler sitting at a table in the corner of the cafeteria. He was sitting with another boy and a girl.

"Hey, Tyler," I said, sitting down across from him.

"Oh, hey, Bella," he said when he recognized me. He had been talking and laughing with his friends.

"Bella, this is Emmett," he said, pointing to the boy. He was huge, very muscular and he seemed very tall. He had a baby face, though, and black curly hair.

"And this is Alice," Tyler finished, pointing to the girl.

She seemed very sweet. She was tiny, with short black hair and pixie like features.

"This is my sister, Bella," Tyler introduced me.

"Really? That's cool. Emmett and I are siblings, too," Alice said, her voice high pitched.

Throughout lunch, mostly Tyler, Emmett and Alice talked, and I sat and listened. I wasn't upset, though. I was just glad I had someone to sit with, instead of sitting all alone.

After lunch was Orchestra. The teacher, Mrs. Foster, was timid but sweet. She introduced me to the class, and because I hadn't yet taken a playing test, put me in the last row of first violins.

"Hey there," a familiar voice said when I sat down.

I turned to see who it was. "Oh! Hey, Alice. You play violin?"

"Yep. Have been since I was seven years old."

"Wow," I remarked. "I've only been playing since sixth grade."

"Well, my mother gave me an ultimatum: I either played the piano or played the violin. And all of my friends dreaded their piano lessons, so I picked the violin." She stopped and smiled. "So, what grade are you in?"

"I'm a freshman."

"Really? You seem much older."

I laughed. "Yeah, I get that a lot. What grade are you in?"

"I'm a junior."

That took me off guard. "Seriously?"

She laughed. "Yeah, yeah, I know. People tell me I look too young to be seventeen all the time."

When the bell rang to change classes, I was actually kind of sad. Orchestra was not only my favorite class because I loved to play the violin, but also because I felt like I had made a friend.

"What class do you have next?" Alice asked as we walked out of the door.

"Uh, looks like Psychology with Mrs. Adkins."

"No way! That's my next class."

"Really?" I smiled. "Wow. That's cool."

I was relieved to have two classes where I would know someone in them. The psychology room was really close to the orchestra room, so Alice and I got in there before most other people did.

We were making small talk when he walked in. He was gorgeous, his hair bronze and slightly messy, but it looked amazing. I could see his piercing green eyes from across the room. He was paler than anyone I'd ever seen before, but he pulled it off well. When he sat down directly in front of me, I almost fainted. I could smell him from my seat, and he smelled deliciously appealing.

"Who is that?" I asked under my breath, making sure he couldn't hear me.

"That is Edward Masen," she replied, her voice full of awe. "He's beautiful isn't he?"

"Uh-huh," I said in approval, and she laughed.

"Don't get too wrapped up in him, darling," she joked. "He already has a girlfriend."

"Seriously?" My heart dropped. "Who?"

"Her name's Rosalie Hale, and she's the most gorgeous girl in the entire school. She's tall, blonde, and amazing. Any guy would kill to be with her, just like any girl would kill to be with him. They're like a power couple."

My stomach started to feel queasy. "I think I know who that is."

"Oh, I'm sorry," she said. "Rosalie isn't a very nice character." "Not exactly," I agreed.

Just then, Edward turned around and faced Alice and I. "Hey there, Alice," he said, his voice smooth like velvet. "Looks like Mrs. Adkins is late again." He took his chair and made it so it completely faced Alice.

"Yeah," Alice agreed, and blushed. Wow. It was weird to see her embarrassed. "Edward, this is my new friend, Bella. She just moved here from California."

Edward looked at me, and my heart melted. He extended his arm over the table, holding out his hand. "Nice to meet you, Bella," he said, and I took his hand, shaking it. "I'm Edward." He smiled at me, and I smiled back, most likely looking like an idiot.

"Nice to meet you, too, Edward," I said, lost in his eyes.

"Bella's had the pleasure of already meeting your girlfriend, Edward," Alice said with a sly smile.

"Oh, really? I'm so sorry," Edward laughed. He was so polite, it was mind-boggling.

I laughed. "I don't understand."

Edward and Alice both laughed, but Edward was the one to speak. "We all know she's not the most considerate person on this planet."

"Well, then why are you with her?" I asked playfully, but as soon as I did, I realized I had crossed a line.

All emotion on Edward's face was erased and his lips pressed into a hard line.

"Bella," Alice chided under her breath.

Before Edward or I could say anything else, Mrs. Adkins walked into the room and began class.

* * * *

Edward didn't talk to us for the rest of the class, and when the bell rang, he was the first one out of the door.

"I'm sorry, Alice, I didn't realize--"

"No, no, Bella, it's okay. He's just touchy." She stopped and smiled at me. "Just watch what you say next time. Well, I'll see you tomorrow!"

When I got to Advanced World History, I was late, and the teacher was not very happy with me. He was an older man who was balding, and every time he spoke, it sounded as if he was struggling to breathe. It was unnerving at first.

The pros to that class, though, were that I got to sit in the back, so I was free to doodle in my notebook as I wished without him noticing. Also, I sat by a boy named Jasper, who reminded me a lot like Edward, not in appearance, but in mannerisms.

Jasper was tall and blonde, with blue eyes and a bright smile. He was a senior, and he was only taking this class because he had failed it as a sophomore and was making up the credit.

We chatted back and forth throughout the class, as much as we could, with Mr. Wise interrupting us the entire time.

When the bell rang, I was relieved that my first day was finally over. I quickly grabbed my things and headed for the door.

"Hey, Bella," Jasper called before I could make it out the door.

I stopped and turned to face him. "Yeah?"

"If you ever need any help with any of the homework in here, or any of your other classes, I can most likely help." He stopped and laughed to himself. "I know I failed this class the first time, but it was mostly because I just never did the homework."

"Thanks, Jasper. That's really nice. I might just have to take you up on that offer sometime."

I know I had mentioned to him how my grandmother had signed me up for all advanced classes, but his offer seemed especially kind, like he would only do it for me.

Oh, well. Overall, it had been a good first day.

When I walked out of the building, I realized that Elizabeth had dropped us off and I didn't know the route to her house, so I started looking for Tyler.

I spotted Tyler across the parking lot, talking to Emmett and Alice. I was surprised when I realized that Jasper, Rosalie and Edward were with them too.

I watched as Edward gave Rosalie a kiss goodbye, and my stomach turned. Internally, I gave myself a rough time for even feeling remorse for seeing them together. I had just met him, and I shouldn't like him this much.

But then, Rosalie climbed into the car with Jasper. That was strange. Were they related? I suppose it made sense; they both were tall and thin, with blonde hair and blue eyes.

As I thought about it more, I realized that Jasper did introduce himself as Jasper Hale, and that Alice had called her Rosalie Hale earlier that day. Huh.

After Jasper and Rosalie pulled out of the parking lot, Edward walked towards his car and drove away. Now that Edward was gone, I figured it was safe to go and talk to Tyler, Alice and Emmett. I didn't know if Edward would still be upset about what I had asked him earlier. And, honestly, I was kind of scared of him. He looked like he could really mess you up if you got on his bad side.

"Hey guys," I called when I got closer to them.

"Hey," they all greeted, and I jumped in on the conversation.

After a few minutes, Emmett and Alice left, and Tyler and I were left in the parking lot alone.

"So, do you know how we're getting home?" I asked him.

"No clue."


End file.
